Ponies got skinny! (and provocative)

[Doe 6]

Have you guys ever thought about the evolution of MLP and how the characters have changed over the years? Let's take a look:

 

The original My Little Pony, chubby and adorable:

 

 

Then they got thinner, with an open mouth, more provocative stances, and more responsive positions:

 

 

And skinnier still:

 

 

What gives? 

[Agent505 661]

I'm going to take a stab and say maybe it's just the way the individuals pictured them outside of the show. 

Lauren Faust for example, she didn't watch the show until after she had played with the toys, so she developed her own images of the ponies - (G4...) 

 

I dont want to say it's probably due to the way society is these days...but I dunno. You know how people are. /notevengoingthere

 

I think we can all agree though the G1 ponies are just... o.o ugly. 

[~Lawful Sturdy Wing~ 522]

I think it's because skinny ponies are cheaper to make, and look more appealing to parents. Most older characters have undergone a size reduction due to rampant obesity, the message we want to be spreading is that is not good to be overweight. I don't know, ascetically speaking I like the skinny ones more.

[Rainbow Dash 1,472]

the skinny ponies are more easy on the eye. i saw the g1 MLP and i said to myself why do these exist? granted the 80's were a crazy time. i dont think the ponies getting skinnier has anything to do with real world issues. like stated above it(being the current generation of ponies) is the vision of the producer and artists

[Bohtty 1,775]

They decided that they didn't want their ponies to be ugly so they made them less like real ponies and more like the cartoon characters that everyone likes.

[Shanks 10,816]

I haven't really paid much attention to how thin or chubby ponies are but I don't think the newer designs are intended to be provocative. I like the newer designs better because the older ponies kind of all look the same to me, I think the intent of the newer designs is to really flesh them out more and make them look more individualistic.

[Jessper 735]

They are nicer now as far as I'm concerned. It's not really any "evil" trend, it's just that it looks better and more cute that way. Small, perhaps thin body with big head and eyes simply has that "D'aaaaaw" factor.

Edited January 10, 2013 by Jessper

[Agent505 661]

I do notice that their heads are staying the same size however...

If that's the case, the bodies getting smaller and still having large heads...im dreading the G5 ponies 

[Antismurf9001 1,271]

I think that the G1 ponies were trying to be more anatomically correct to actual ponies.  After that, they must have decided, "Screw this, we need them to look adorable," so they're eyes were quintupled in size and designed to look just smaller in general.

[Shanks 10,816]

I do notice that their heads are staying the same size however...

If that's the case, the bodies getting smaller and still having large heads...im dreading the G5 ponies 

 

It is a little soon to be dreading them considering that we are probably a long ways off from G4 ending but if I had to take my guess as to what they would look like probably not that much different from G4.

[Agent505 661]

 

It is a little soon to be dreading them considering that we are probably a long ways off from G4 ending but if I had to take my guess as to what they would look like probably not that much different from G4.

 

Yeah you say that, and then BAM - we're stuck with these matchstick ponies with hot air balloon heads  

Nah im only joking, I dont think they can GET any skinner. Look at Cadence! She'd break if they manufacture her any thinner :3 

[Rainbow Dash 1,472]

They are nicer now as far as I'm concerned. It's not really any "evil" trend, it's just that it looks better and more cute that way. Small, perhaps thin body with big head and eyes simply has that "D'aaaaaw" factor.

i think they were trying to do that with the G1 ponies. im not sure though cause i dont pay attention to the older generations(being 1, and 2 and so on) But my sister did state that compared to the originals Lara Fausts Ponies are waaaay cuter than the creepy versions she grew up with.

[Jessper 735]

i think they were trying to do that with the G1 ponies. im not sure though cause i dont pay attention to the older generations(being 1, and 2 and so on) But my sister did state that compared to the originals Lara Fausts Ponies are waaaay cuter than the creepy versions she grew up with.

Well, they failed if they were trying to do it with G1, because they were, as was stated, chubby and big and if you ask me, creepy, bordering on nightmare fuel in some cases. You could just see the "Please kill me" in their eyes.

Oh no, I'm very happy with FiM. Tho some of the toys are still creepy.

[TailsIsNotAlone 3,695]

To be fair, the older ones didn't look very good. And I think "provocative" is way too strong a word. They're more aesthetically pleasing, I guess, but not blatantly sexualized like the Bratz dolls (which, BTW, the entire toy industry should be ashamed of).

 

The only thing today's pony toys provoke me to do is to grab them in one hand, pictures of the show in the other, go to Hasbro and plant them both under the CEO's nose and yell "WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" But that's the brony in me.

[Phaeston-e12 173]

Although I do agree with the first type of toy being fairly unimpressive. I find it more reasonable to believe that the body size of these toy have gotten skinnier to meet the entertainment culture's current trend. Although little girls at this point in time have no idea what anorexia and all that being skinny hype is about, it's still parents who end up buying these kind of toys for them.

[FoxyCryptid 4,330]

I assume they were re-done because the G1 ponies suffer from a bad case of the "Uncanny Valley", look at those things, they're worse than "I can walk" Pinkie Pie. 

 

They added more generic "cute" features to them to make them more pleasing to the eye.

 

Also, only the Alicorns are that skinny, I think it's meant to make them look more towering next to regular ponies. 

Edited January 10, 2013 by Shoboni

[Jessper 735]

Although I do agree with the first type of toy being fairly unimpressive. I find it more reasonable to believe that the body size of these toy have gotten skinnier to meet the entertainment culture's current trend. Although little girls at this point in time have no idea what anorexia and all that being skinny hype is about, it's still parents who end up buying these kind of toys for them.

 

But come on, now even horses ponies have to be fat otherwise it's not politically correct and has to be shunned?

I wish there was more pressure on kids to be thin, maybe they would stop dying from heart attack at 20 then.

That story about toys and models causing anorexia is the same one as games causing all the violence in the world.

[Phaeston-e12 173]

But come on, now even horses ponies have to be fat otherwise it's not politically correct and has to be shunned?

I wish there was more pressure on kids to be thin, maybe they would stop dying from heart attack at 20 then.

That story about toys and models causing anorexia is the same one as games causing all the violence in the world.

 

There's a difference between thin and being healthy. And no I am not implying that the entertainment culture is trying to foster that kind of thing. It's more a change in taste among the audience. I've never attempted to make any kind of generalization aside from comment about a recent trend.

 

I have little clue on how my comment can be translated into 'it's not politically correct and has to be shunned' as well.

Edited January 10, 2013 by Phaeston-e12

[Jessper 735]

There's a difference between thin and being healthy. And no I am not implying that the entertainment culture is trying to foster that kind of thing. It's more a change in taste among the audience. I've never attempted to make any kind of generalization aside from comment about a recent trend.

 

I have little clue on how my comment can be translated into 'it's not politically correct and has to be shunned' as well.

 

You weren't supposed to take it literally and overly seriously. I hoped you'll get the point and I think you did.

Tho looking back, I'm not sure if I reacted in the right way, because I honestly can't say whether the remark about current trend and "It's parent's who end up buying them" were strictly speculative or the (so popular today)  evil industry starving kids and parents allowing them to. I assumed the latter, obviously. So, apologies if that was not the case.

 

 

On unrelated note.

 

 

 

Would anypony really pick the one on the left?

The toys still aren't ideal, but at least they are not creepy.

[Phaeston-e12 173]

The toy that's being

 

You weren't supposed to take it literally and overly seriously. I hoped you'll get the point and I think you did.

Tho looking back, I'm not sure if I reacted in the right way, because I honestly can't say whether the remark about current trend and "It's parent's who end up buying them" were strictly speculative or the (so popular today)  evil industry starving kids and parents allowing them to. I assumed the latter, obviously. So, apologies if that was not the case.

 

 

On unrelated note.

 

 

 

Would anypony really pick the one on the left?

The toys still aren't ideal, but at least they are not creepy.

 

The current MLP toys that are being churned out is supposed to reflect the original show that's being aired, and being an aspiring artist myself, I spent hours, days and months to study the amount of design decisions that went into these characters on questions such as why the current generation are looking the way it is, why the main cast of this show are looking exactly that way etc. You would be surprised to find out the amount of complex decisions that's involved in this show by the artists and the animators.

 

These kind of decisions can give a variety of insights into things such as the current cultural trends, what kind of consumer expectations these artists are placed under and how they try to adjust to these kind of factors and produce designs that works.

 

Although you criticize my 'over-thinking'. It's not that hard for me to come up with 20~30 different questions on why these toys are looking that way within 5 minutes or so. It's bit frustrating on my end to try reduce my arguments down to perhaps 2~3 paragraphs from something I would rather write 10+ page essays on.

Edited January 10, 2013 by Phaeston-e12

[A Jewel of Rarity 207]

well really they are designed after the ponys in the tv show which have changed over time because the creators wanted them to be cuter

[Jessper 735]

The toy that's being

 

 

The current MLP toys that are being churned out is supposed to reflect the original show that's being aired, and being an aspiring artist myself, I spent hours, days and months to study the amount of design decisions that went into these characters on questions such as why the current generation are looking the way it is, why the main cast of this show are looking exactly that way etc. You would be surprised to find out the amount of complex decisions that's involved in this show by the artists and the animators.

 

These kind of decisions can give a variety of insights into things such as the current cultural trends, what kind of consumer expectations these artists are placed under and how they try to adjust to these kind of factors and produce designs that works.

 

Although you criticize my 'over-thinking'. It's not that hard for me to come up with 20~30 different questions on why these toys are looking that way within 5 minutes or so. It's bit frustrating on my end to try reduce my arguments down to perhaps 2~3 paragraphs from something I would rather write 10+ page essays on.

 

How do I criticize your overthinking? If anything, I criticized the ambiguity of your post. Which was largely caused by (or perhaps was the cause of) me taking you for angry parent. I wasn't even criticizing for that matter, just laughing in desperation at the human kind.

 

But FiM has one of the more interesting designs out there for sure, so very simplistic and yet beautiful with highly distinct characters, but I definitely didn't compare it to the older generations as I really find them all related just through the name "MLP". Well, that and the fact I don't like the other generations, so I don't want to sped time examining them. But if you have something very surprising, shoot. The trend would seem to be make a nice things as opposed to making ugly things in time when the range was so small that it didn't really matter. 

 

Well, actually, I'm still not sure whether you were making a connection to the whole "too skinny style forced on kids" idea or not.

Edited January 10, 2013 by Jessper

[CrystalRose 636]

I grew up playing with G1 toys and the tv show and I loved it. I'm not sure why so many bronies think they're creepy; I think they're adorable. They're much more quaint and flowery than the current cartoon, which is so, so modern.

 

The current ponies are built on what's trending; lumps and bumps in anatomy have smoothed out, facial structure has simplified exponentially. I dont think they've become provocative, but the slimmer, longer-legged, less anatomically correct design has allowed for more dynamic poses.

[Sonata18 105]

I adore my collection of G1 ponies and I still watch my DVDs of the G1 show and movies..... but there's no denying that the skinny ponies with massive eyes are so much cuter.   They are very sleek and perfect now. 

[Ivy Red 4]

Really I think its just because it uses less material and less plastic. It's like how they had an over load on pink and made Celestia pink .p Yea I was slightly upset about that but really I don't think they are trying to make being fat seem bad and you have to be super thin or something, its just what ever go goes. Honestly we shouldn't worry about this stuff, like this stuff they had to remove Disty Doo/Derpy because people thought she was to make fun of Mentaly Challeged kids. So I guess what I am saying it is... They aren't trying to do anything bad they are just going with the image that was created over time.